The present invention pertains generally to an apparatus for compacting garbage within a removable container.
Known trash compactors for the home and small business establishments are of complex, costly construction and typically are intended for interior use. In addition to being costly, such compactors oftentimes require structural modification of cabinets and plumbing for their installation.
Known trash compactors for commercial use are not suited, even on a reduced scale, for use in compacting light commercial or household waste which is normally stored in trash or garbage cans. Waste generated by households, restaurants, hotels and other commercial establishments is of a density permitting compaction with water system pressures.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,512 discloses a compactor utilizing water system pressure controlled by a three-way valve with a cylinder piston retracted by creating a suction force above the piston. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,654,855 and 3,763,773 disclose cabinet-housed compactors having bellows retracted by internal and external retraction means. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,150,812 and 2,212,047 disclose fluid operated can crushing devices with three-way valves thereon. U.S. Pat. No. 3,685,438 discloses a compactor having a fixed head against which a portable refuse container is lifted by a cylinder operated by water system pressure. U.S. Pat. No. 2,579,176 discloses a tobacco press having an air cylinder centrally disposed between a pair of uprights having telescopic sections with a platform therebetween.